What Would Have Been
by shunkie
Summary: What would Twilight have been like if Edward and company weren't vampires? Would Edward and Bella still have fallen in love? Would Jacob have had a better shot?
1. Chapter 1

**Hi everybody... I've been reading a lot of stories lately, and I've noticed some consistent OOC traits, so I decided to write my own. I hope you enjoy it! Bella POV, of course.**

**Chapter 1: The First Day of the Rest of My Life**

That particular late September morning, I awoke to the still-unfamiliar blaring of my new alarm clock. I woke right away, but was reluctant to drag my lazy self out of bed. I cracked my eyes open, squinting against the bright sunlight. I was still unused to the bright green canopy outside my bedroom window, having recently moved from dry, brown Phoenix to Washington. My parents had been divorced for most of my life, and I had lived with my mother in Arizona until a few months ago, when she remarried and I decided to give her some alone time. My father wasn't bad to live with, though; we got along pretty well.

I peered at the clock; it read seven-fifteen. I groaned slightly and pulled myself out of bed, grabbing jeans and a cozy sweater from my dresser. _September is still shorts season,_ I grumbled internally. I'd been going to school in chilly Forks, Washington for several weeks now, and every single day I'd had to wear a sweater or sweatshirt. Before leaving Arizona, my mother had taken me shopping for cold-weather clothes, remembering herself the weather in Washington. We'd had to drive almost an hour out of Phoenix to find a store stocking what we needed. I sighed and grabbed my backpack, pulling on a shoe while I hopped down the stairs to the kitchen.

On the counter lay a scrap of paper covered with Charlie's chicken-scratch handwriting; I picked it up to read it. "Bells, honey, be home right away today. Surprise after school. Love, Dad." I read to myself. _Strange_, I thought, tossing the note back on the counter. Charlie left every morning around six, so I didn't see him until he came home at night, which suited me just fine. I shoved two Pop-Tarts into the toaster and leaned against the counter while the processed pastries toasted. I checked the clock; seven forty. I hit the eject button and grabbed the Pop-Tarts, wrapping them in paper towel to eat on the way to school. I grabbed my backpack off the floor and headed out the door.

--

First period was homeroom; my teacher was Mrs. Booth. The other students said she was nice enough normally, and she certainly treated me with extra kindness due to my status as the daughter of Forks' police chief. When I hurried in two minutes late, she waved me in and continued talking. I slid in next to Angela Weber, the one good friend I'd made so far in Forks.

"What's she talking about?" I whispered, dropping my bag on the floor quietly.

"Oh, some concert or play or something," Angela replied, preoccupied. I smiled.

"Oh, no need to get so detailed, please!" I mock-protested. Angela smiled sheepishly, and gestured to her other side. At the next table over, two of the more popular girls in school were gossiping excitedly, keeping their voices barely lowered.

"Apparently the Cullens are coming back into town," Angela whispered, "and-" She dropped off suddenly as Mrs. Booth walked up to our table.

"Miss Stanley, Miss Mallory, may I ask what is so interesting?" She asked, her usually merry voice chilly. One thing I had learned about Mrs. Booth was that she played favorites. It was clear that she tried not to, but I suppose she couldn't help herself. Jessica and Lauren were definitely not in her favorites category.

"Nothing, Mrs. Booth," they chorused, unable to keep themselves from smiling slightly despite the stern look on the teacher's face. Jessica tucked a dark curl behind her ear, attempting to look innocent. Angela and I exchanged a look, trying ourselves not to laugh now. Mrs. Booth must have been in a good mood, however, because she allowed the infraction.

"Let's keep it down, all right, ladies?" She went back to her desk and grabbed a sheaf of papers. "Okay, class, your schedules are being modified. Some of you," she threw significant glances toward Jessica and Lauren's corner of the room, where many of the so-called popular kids were gathered, "will not be affected by this, but you get a new copy anyway. AP Biology teachers are being switched because Mr. Murphy is out sick, and going to be out for at least a month. He fell last weekend, fractured a couple bones, et cetera. You all know the routine. Anyway, here you go." She passed out all the new schedules. Angela and I had both been in Mr. Murphy's class, and so checked our new schedules with vested interest.

"Mr. Banner?" I mouthed to Angela, hoping we had the same teacher still. Despite a passing interest from the popular kids, I was clearly a disappointment as far as popular kid material went, and Angela was the only person I could consistently call a friend. She nodded, and my spirits rose. The bell rang, and Mrs. Booth struggled to keep control over the class to finish distributing the schedules. Finally, she gave up and leaned against the edge of her desk as the class filed out. Angela and I gathered our books and made our way through the crush out to the hallway. Jessica and Lauren had resumed chatting excitedly about, apparently, a group of people returning from an extended vacation. I poked Angela, who was talking to her boyfriend Ben about a calculus project due in their class.

"Who are Jessica and Lauren talking about?" I asked, genuinely curious. New people always shake up the routine, and by the level of excitement in their voices, Jessica and Lauren were getting pretty shaken up.

"Oh, the Cullens," Ben cut in. "Probably the most important part of the social scene," He scoffed, "here at Forks High. They went to Paris about a month ago because Dr. Cullen was offered a short lecture series at the University of Paris. Anyway, the message you need to take away from this is that we go to a boring school, where nothing ever happens." Angela smiled.

"I think she gets that message enough from us," she scolded gently. "At this rate, she'll leave by Thanksgiving, and I'll lose my only friend that doesn't drag me to badly-dubbed martial arts movies on the weekend, so let's keep it upbeat." Ben grinned.

"So what will you guys be up to this weekend?" I asked, ready to change the subject. I'd met many of the popular crowd in my first week in Forks, when Charlie had trotted me around like a trick pony, and I hadn't thought much of them. "Feel like a movie in Port Angeles?"

--

By fifth period lunch, I had heard much about the mysterious Cullens, but still hadn't met any of them. Angela and I joined the quickly growing line for lunch, and I asked her to point them out if she saw them.

"Oh, don't worry about it, Bella. Believe me, if you see them, you'll know. They're nothing like anyone else at Forks." She smoothed a strand of shiny light-brown hair back into her ponytail, glancing around the cafeteria for Ben. "How are you liking Forks so far, anyway?" I grimaced.

"You sound like everyone else here, circa the first week I was here," I said, looking away.

"I'm sorry," Angela said, instantly apologetic. "It's just that you never really talk about it, you know? I just want to make sure you're feeling-" I cut her off, laughing.

"Angela, that's sweet, but I'm okay. It's different, you know, mainly temperature-wise," I said, tugging at the sleeve of my thick green cardigan. We moved up to the front of the lunch line. Angela grabbed an apple and a sandwich; I chose a Styrofoam cup of soup and a soda. "One thing that's definitely different is the food. Lunch in Phoenix generally consists of cold items, for one thing," I said, gesturing to my cup, which was steaming even through the plastic lid. Angela smiled, but her smile dropped an instant later to be replaced by pure surprise.

"There's the Cullens," she said, gesturing behind me. I turned around a little too fast, eager to put faces to the names muttered around me all morning. I only caught a glimpse of a group of good-looking people before slamming into one of the large concrete pillars scattered around the spacious room. The collision caused me to spill my soup all down my jeans and onto the floor. I swore under my breath, and heard laughter and scattered applause around me. Blushing furiously, I knelt and began using the napkins from my tray to try to sop up the chicken noodle mess. Angela immediately knelt beside me, using her own napkins to try to help. Several people offered us paper towels to help, and the actual mess was cleaned up in short order, but after I stood, I could see laughter on the faces of the fabled Cullens. _Great, just what I need_, I thought. _What a first impression._ I grabbed and paid for a sandwich and Angela and I went to sit with Ben at our customary table, brushing past the group of teenagers which so obviously must rule the school. As I slipped past them, more careful this time to avoid the pillars and tables, I made eye contact with one of them, a tall boy with messy hair and dark hazel eyes. He smiled, seeming to make a joke simply with his eyes, and I broke eye contact immediately, blushing even harder.

"So, wasn't I right?" Angela asked when we were safely back at our own table.

"Right about what?" I asked, feigning innocence. I picked the crust off my turkey sandwich, deliberately avoiding Angela's eyes. If she was anything like the few girlfriends I had had in Arizona, I knew what was coming.

"You would have known the Cullens even if you hadn't run into them," she patiently explained. I looked over my shoulder at the laughing group, which looked like something out of a movie. Two girls, both gorgeous, and three guys, all handsome. I nodded in agreement, turning back to the table.

"Yeah, I suppose so," I said nonchalantly. "I mean, this isn't exactly a large school. Even with my memory, I know everybody by sight if not by name."

"That's not what I meant and you know it. Just look at them!"

"What's so special about these Cullens anyway?" I wanted to know, trying in vain not to look behind me again.

"It's a very long, complicated story; are you sure you're up for it?" I nodded, sure that it couldn't be that long or complicated. This was Forks, after all. Angela took a deep breath.

"Emmett, the biggest guy, Alice, the tiny girl with dark hair, and Edward, the other guy with reddish hair, are Dr. Cullen's adopted kids. The other two, Jasper and Rosalie, are Mrs. Cullen's niece and nephew." I raised my eyebrows at this convoluted situation. Angela held up a hand.

"Wait, it gets more complicated. Emmett and Rosalie are dating; have been for almost a year. Jasper and Alice are dating too, which makes Edward odd man out."

"Wow," I remarked dryly. "Dr. Cullen must be more open than my dad to let all those kids date and live together."

"Oh, he's only had Emmett, Alice, and Edward living with him for about five years. Jasper and Rosalie have been with Mrs. Cullen since before she got married. Anyway, Lauren's had a crush on Edward for a long time, and she's hoping this year it'll work out for her."

"Will it?" I asked, oddly curious by this time. I glanced over my shoulder; the group had sat down by now and I could see Lauren tossing her silky blonde hair over her shoulder while Edward looked vaguely apathetic beside her. Angela laughed.

"Doubtful," she said, and I laughed. "Anyway, you'll probably pick up enough information about the whole thing this afternoon; everyone will be talking about it."

--

Angela was right again; all afternoon I was picking up snippets of information about these newcomers. By two-thirty I had learned the brand of Rosalie's jeans, the size of Alice's shoes, Emmett's favorite quarterback, the book Jasper was reading, and the number of texts Edward had sent Lauren while in Paris. When I walked into AP Biology with Angela, a small group of people was clustered around Edward, chatting and laughing happily. We sat down just as Mr. Banner began class.

"Hello, ladies and gentlemen," he said. "I know some of you haven't been in my class before, so we're reassigning lab partners today. No swapping, no complaining; this is one hour a day, people. Not a big deal. Okay, here we go..." He listed off pairs, accompanied by multiple groans. Apparently Mr. Banner was one of the few teachers who paid attention to who his students spent the most time with, and planned his partnerships to break those groups up. He refused to allow distractions in his classroom. "Miss Mallory and Mr. Cheney; Miss Weber and Miss O'Halloran; and Miss Swan and Mr. Cullen. Please move to sit with your partner and begin the lab described on the sheet on each table." Angela gave me a highly significant look as she moved to sit with Bridget. Lauren gave me a poisonous look as she brushed past me to sit with Ben, which I disregarded. I knew without thinking about it too much that I wouldn't be a serious rival for poor Edward.

"Hi, I'm Edward Cullen," a voice announced to my left. I turned, and there sat probably the most-discussed student in school. He was tall, though not as tall as his older brother, with reddish hair and dark green eyes. He stuck out his right hand to shake, which I took hesitantly.

"I'm Bella Swan," I replied. He chuckled.

"I think everyone knows," he said, turning to look at the lab sheet. "Your dad has been bragging about you since July." I blushed and looked down at my notebook, using my long hair to hide my quickly-reddening face.

"Well, everyone talks about you, too," I said. I had been eager to change the subject, but could feel myself blushing even harder at my sad attempt. He grinned; a crooked, charming grin that I had identified even in my few hours around the Cullens as his trademark.

"Oh, really? What do they say?"

"Nothing," I quickly replied, eager to move on. I grabbed the packet out of his hands, scanning it for myself. I began assembling the Bunsen burner, trying to show that the subject was closed. Edward wasn't taking the bait, however.

"Doesn't sound like nothing," he wheedled. He flipped a pen around in his fingers expertly, flashing me that crooked grin again. I could feel Lauren's angry gaze on me, but when I glanced behind me she quickly looked away.

"Whatever. Let's start the lab; Mr. Banner is getting worked up." Edward looked intrigued, but complied. The rest of the class period, we barely spoke aside from required conference regarding the lab procedure. I had never been very popular or outgoing, and therefore never built up the skills to charm new acquaintances. By the end of class, I could tell that my appeal as a newcomer had waned, and Edward rushed off after the bell rang to meet the other Cullens. I waited for Angela, and we walked out together towards our lockers.

"How was it partnering with Edward Cullen?" She asked in a near-whisper. Despite her copious amounts of common sense, she was not immune to local celebrity. I shrugged.

"I wasn't very interesting," I said, blushing even at recollection of my behavior. Angela patted my shoulder consolingly. "Whatever. I don't care if the Cullens like me." I said with a sudden burst of self-esteem. I opened my locker and began slipping textbooks into my backpack while Angela did the same.

"Sorry, I have to leave right away," I said apologetically. "Charlie wanted me home right away for some surprise." Angela said she understood, and I hurried out of school.

--

"Dad?" I asked, opening the door to the house. In the driveway was an unfamiliar car besides Charlie's cruiser, and I honestly had no idea what was going on.

"In here, Bells, honey," he called. I threw down my backpack in the hallway and went into the kitchen, where my father was sitting with an older man and a teenage boy probably around my own age.

"Um, hello?" I tried, knowing at this point that I should probably recognize the visitors. They all laughed.

"Bells, you remember Billy Black and his son Jacob, don't you? You used to play with Jacob's sisters while Billy and I fished during the summers." I pulled up a chair, trying to remember.

"A little," I admitted. Jacob grinned.

"We brought you a little Forks-warming present," he announced, handing me a tidily wrapped box. His dark eyes met mine as he handed me the gift, and I felt my heart flip a little. "Sorry it's a little late; we started it when you got here and, well, you'll see why." I unwrapped the box and found a beautiful wooden box, with animal figures carved into the lid.

"Thank you!" I exclaimed. "It's very pretty," I examined the lid, running my fingertips over the carvings. I looked at Billy. "Did you make this?"

"Oh, it was more Jacob than me," Jacob laughed loudly. "All right, all right, it was all Jacob," he admitted, smiling proudly at his son.

"Well, it's beautiful." I said, smiling at Jacob. Charlie and Billy exchanged glances.

"Billy and Jacob are staying for dinner, Bells, and we're having some of Harry Clearwater's fish fry, so you don't have to cook tonight. Maybe you want to hang out with Jacob outside?" It was clear to me, in that instant, that Charlie really wanted me to have another friend, and I decided to indulge him.

"Sure," I acquiesced. "You probably know the area better than me, but sure."

--

Later that night, as I was getting ready for bed, I reflected on the day. _Definitely not my usual day in Forks, _I smiled to myself. As I thought about my encounter with Edward Cullen, I could still feel my face warming, and my smile dropped. _So I won't be friends with the popular kids; it's not like that'll be much of a change._ Despite this eminently logical line of reasoning, I still felt a little disappointed. Something about Edward had seemed worthwhile. I shrugged on a hoodie to sleep in and began brushing my hair, but my cell phone vibrated on my nightstand. I started, still unused to having a phone. My mother had insisted that I get one so we could communicate more quickly than email with text message, but it still seemed unnecessary to me. I picked it up and flipped it open, reading the text message I'd received.

From:360-555-8722

so, what do people say about me? ;)

**Okay, so what do you think? Sorry the ending is a little abrupt; I didn't really want to go any farther. **


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Do I even need to say it? I'm not even going to try to make it cute. Not mine! Also, flashbacks are in italics.**

**Chapter 2: New Friends in the City**

About a week later, I was rifling through my backpack frantically for a Spanish essay by my locker when I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned and saw Angela, smiling in the way she only did when Ben had asked her to a movie that she couldn't bear without moral support. I pushed my hair back behind my shoulder and turned back to my bag, smiling. "No problem," I said, and I heard her sigh with relief and sink down beside me.

"How do you always know?" She asked, pulling her legs up to her chest as she leaned against the locker next to me. "And what are you doing?"

"Spanish essay," I grunted, attempting to hold open my backpack and search without having to pull out all my books. Finally, I gave up and dumped them all out on the floor. "So when, where, who?"

"Port Angeles, Friday night. I was thinking the three of us, but we could invite more people and make it a party. Or at least as party-like as we ever get," Angela added hastily when I raised my eyebrows. "You could invite Edward," She wheedled. I stopped the search for a split second and gave her my most incredulous look. "What? I think he likes you," she offered. At my even more incredulous scoff, she edited. "Not necessarily like that, just as a friend. It could be fun."

"Ange, a few days of texting and chatting in school do not a friend make, okay? Now stop distracting me, I absolutely must find this essay or Senora Goff will murder me." I stopped for a minute and sank back on my heels to survey the mess I'd made. I threw up my hands. "Senora Goff will just have to cope. I know I shoved it in my bag earlier, but now I can't find it."

"Just go reprint it, it isn't that big a deal, right?" At this point Angela was flipping through something on her phone, not even paying attention to me.

"Yeah, but I didn't type it, I handwrote it when she gave us time during class on Monday." I started putting things back in my bag, attempting to organize my random papers. Angela hissed in sympathy. Senora Goff was fairly lenient generally, but pretty harsh when it came to homework. I stood up, gave her a hand, and grabbed my bag. "Whatever. I'll just redo it; I think I can remember most of it. Want to help me?" I tried to look hopeful. Angela was one of the top students in Spanish; Senora Goff loved her.

"Sure. Is it actually due today?" I stood and grabbed my bag, avoiding her gaze guiltily, because it had been due the day before, and Angela was an absolute stickler for homework. "Bella!" she gasped. I rolled my eyes. _I wish she wouldn't be so dramatic_, I thought, but I knew she was right.

"Sorry, _Mom_," I grumbled. "I did it! I just lost it," I finished guiltily. We entered the tiny library and quickly staked out a table. The library wasn't exactly bustling, but even a few other people in the small room made a difference. I spread my books out on the table and opened my Spanish notebook, already stressing about remembering the essay. Out of the corner of my eye I saw three people walk into the small library, looking like actors from a movie about high school. It was Edward, Jasper, and Alice. I ducked my head a little and tried to look busy. "Ang, what did you write yours on again?" Angela started to respond, but fell silent when Alice walked over. I could feel Jasper and Edward's eyes on our table, and I started to blush a little.

"Hey, guys," she said, smiling. I tucked my hair behind my ear and looked up, emboldened for a moment. "Bella, I found this in the hallway. I don't know if it's just a draft or whatever, but just in case, you know," She handed me a crumpled sheet covered in my Charlie-like handwriting.

"My essay!" I was surprised, to say the least. "Thank you so much! I was actually in here because I had to rewrite it." Alice smiled again, and I felt a surge of goodwill towards this strangely nice popular girl. I saw her glance back to the two guys still waiting by the door and give them a tiny, quick nod.

"So you're not busy this afternoon then?" She asked hopefully, perching on the side of the table. I looked at Angela.

"I guess not. Why?" I could feel the excitement emanating off Angela even without looking at her.

"Well, us three were going to go out and get dinner someplace tonight, but we didn't feel like going alone, and you know Emmett and Rosalie; we can't take them anywhere together." I didn't know, of course, but Alice's laugh was infectious, and I grinned. I could believe it; they were always all over each other at school. "So do you guys want to come? Angela, you can bring Ben if you want,"

"I actually can't," she said regretfully. "It's dorky, but Wednesday nights are family night." Alice frowned momentarily, then looked to me.

"Sure, I guess," I answered. Alice grinned, seeming relieved, and I briefly wondered why.

"So how about we'll be over at your house to pick you up in an hour?" She asked. I nodded. "Great! See you later!" She practically danced over to the guys with glee, making me laugh. Edward looked over at me and I froze, but he just smiled.

--

I hurried home to get ready. I agonized over clothing choices, feeling severely limited for the first time by the abridged wardrobe I'd brought to tide me over until Renee could ship all my clothes. Finally, I felt too frustrated to continue and flopped onto my bed, still in sweatpants. I grabbed my iPod and clicked it onto shuffle, then plugged it into my stereo, hoping the music would calm me down a little bit. I listened to a few songs, then decided I probably should try to get ready. However, as I was getting up, I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. I pulled it out, not recognizing the number.

"Hello?" I asked, balancing my phone on my shoulder as I pulled my long hair back into a ponytail messily.

"Hey, Bella?" Alice's voice chimed through as clear as if she were standing right there. "What are you wearing tonight?" I was a little taken aback, but she was just so cheerful there was no way I could feel strange about this. It was weird, but already I felt like this was normal.

"I don't know, actually," I admitted, rubbing my forehead. "I'm in sweats." I heard a small but distinct intake of air.

"Don't worry, Bella! I'll be there soon, I'll help you out!" I heard her phone click closed, but not before I heard an engine accelerating, and I smiled. Sure enough, I barely had time to run a brush through my tangly hair before I heard the doorbell ring impatiently. I ran downstairs and saw Alice through the panes of glass on our door. She was carrying a medium-sized canvas tote bag besides her signature oversized red patent leather bag, and dark sunglasses were perched atop her spiky hair. She waved frantically as I let her in.

"The guys are coming in about fifteen minutes, probably," She said, kicking off her tiny flats. She followed me upstairs to my room, tsk-ing jokingly when she saw the state of my floor. Immediately, however, she picked up a pair of dark jeans I had discarded as too long and shook them out, inspecting them. "Wear these," she instructed, and turned around so I could change. I complied, of course. While she was turned around, she found an oatmeal-colored shirt and tossed it at me. "I hope this isn't too weird," she said anxiously. "Me just showing up like this and dressing you." I snorted.

"Not at all," I assured her. I turned around and displayed her handiwork. She looked thoughtful.

"It needs color," she murmured, and rummaged through the canvas tote. "How about this?" She handed me a deep purple zip-up hoodie. "This is Forks, after all," she laughed. When she was satisfied, she grabbed my hairbrush off my dresser. "May I?" She asked, walking toward me with the brush. I nodded, a bit in shock. Within about three minutes, she had brushed my hair and spritzed it with something that made it shiny and smooth, and arranged it so it fell over my shoulders. "Wow," she said, stepping back to admire her work. "Perfect! I don't know where we're going; I think we're just going to find someplace, but this will work. I feel like it won't be too rainy, too." Just as I was about to ask her how she knew, when just that morning I had heard that it was actually supposed to rain that night, the doorbell rang yet again, but this time it only rang once. Alice fairly flew downstairs, while I was still hunting for my other flat.

"Um, Bella?" I heard her call. I looked down the stairs and saw Jacob towering over tiny Alice. _I go a whole month with about two friends and all of a sudden I'm the most popular girl in Forks,_ I thought ironically.

"Hey, Jake," I called, hurrying back into my room to grab my bag and going downstairs. "What's up?" He handed me a large manila envelope marked 'Charlie'.

"Just running errands for my dad," He said affably. "It's the deed to your truck." I saw his eyes flicker to Alice and I remembered that they didn't know each other.

"Oh! Alice, Jake, Jake, Alice," I said quickly. "Alice goes to my school, Jake is my dad's best friend's son." I was about to make more detailed introductions, but then I heard a knock on the door. _At least it isn't the bell,_ I thought.

"Oh, are you having people over, Bells?" Jake asked, slipping into usage of my childhood nickname. "I'll get out of your way. Tell Charlie to call my dad, okay?" He waved, and let Jasper and Edward in as he left. I heard his car roar out of the driveway.

"Who was that?" Jasper asked Alice after he kissed her hello. Edward stood silently behind him, expressionless. She waved a hand dismissively.

"Bella's dad's friend's son," she said, smiling as she rattled off the connection.

"Jake," I supplied. I snuck a glance at Edward. He was staring out the window on the door, his eyes fixed on the road where Jake had just driven away. An instant later, he glanced at me, and our eyes me for a second before we both looked away. Jasper looked uncomfortable.

"Your boyfriend, Bella?" He asked with a forced smile. _No wonder,_ I thought. _Is this intensely uncomfortable for anyone else?_ I shook my head perhaps too vigorously.

"No, no, no. We used to hang out when we were little and I would stay the summer, then I met him again just a couple weeks ago." It seemed like instantly the tension diffused. Edward's stiff posture relaxed, and he turned back to face the three of us. Jasper even seemed more calm. I wondered if Alice was really oblivious or if she was just pretending to be as she rifled through her huge bag for sunglasses.

"All right, you three. Enough chitchat, let's get out of here." She grabbed Jasper's hand and pulled him out the front door to his waiting car. I had to stop to scribble a note for Charlie and lock the front door, and Edward waited for me.

"So do you know where we're going?" I asked, trying to break the silence that was quickly becoming awkward. He shrugged, leaning casually on the doorframe.

"Probably that Italian place in Port Angeles; Alice loves that place," he said. I turned my key in the lock and twisted, then yanked it out again, a bit violently. "Wow, what did that lock ever do to you?" He asked, a little smile on his face. I blushed.

"It's stubborn," I said by way of justification, and turned to head to the car, Edward following me. Alice predictably had taken the shotgun seat, and was already flipping through her tiny apple green iPod to find driving music. Edward stepped past me to open the car door for me. I flushed even more and muttered a thank you as Jasper laughed.

"Edward Cullen, ever the gentleman," I caught a glimpse of Edward scowling at him in the rearview mirror as he went around the back of the car to get in. Alice plugged the iPod in and some upbeat pop song started playing. She started humming along and dancing in her seat. Edward laughed, and the sound made me jump. It was strange, how wonderful his laugh sounded, but I blushed even more just thinking it.

"So, where did you move from again?" I looked at Edward and saw a pair of intense green eyes meeting mine. I felt for a second like he could tell what I was thinking, because he had a hint of a smile on his face.

"Phoenix," I replied, trying to calm down. "It's different, for sure. Like I was talking to my mom yesterday, and she said it's still in the eighties there," I pointedly looked outside, where it was gray and drizzling. "I think I almost like rain, though." Edward laughed under his breath.

"What's your mom like?" He asked suddenly. I raised my eyebrows at the inelegant segue. He shrugged and gave me a crooked grin. "Just curious," he said.

"She's... unique," I smiled and felt a pang of homesickness. "She's really passionate about everything. When I was younger, she'd switch around from class to class, from fad to fad. Usually I didn't know about them until she was done with them. But mostly what I remember is her playing the piano. We didn't have a super-nice one, but she loved it, and she'd play her favorite songs over and over." Alice turned around, surprise on her face.

"Edward plays the piano!" She exclaimed, and right away Edward scoffed.

"Not that well," he said.

"That's ridiculous, Edward, and you know it," Alice said good-naturedly. "Bella, he plays amazingly. You should get him to play for you sometime," she said, giving Edward a significant look. His eyes widened, and he gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head. I felt a flare of resentment; no one was forcing him to talk to me. I shook out my hair and looked out the window, but glanced back through the dark curtain. Jasper's laughing eyes met mine, and I knew he knew what I was doing. _How does he do that?_ I thought, embarrassed, and tried to relax, although remembering the startled look on Edward's face made me upset all over again. Alice turned to face me.

"Bella! Are you doing anything for the play?" I vaguely remembered seeing posters announcing tryouts and shook my head, thinking of all the things that could go wrong. Tripping on wires and falling into the audience came to mind. "Why not?" she exclaimed, genuine disappointment filling her face. "We always do the play. It's so fun, and you'll love Mr. Wheatlin."

"I don't know," I hedged. "In case you guys haven't noticed, I'm not the most coordinated." Edward laughed.

"I think we definitely know that," he said, and I flashed him a mock-angry face, which only made him laugh harder.

"Maybe sets," I acquiesced. Alice clapped her hands.

"Oh, this will be so fun!" She fairly bounced in her seat with excitement. Jasper reached over and grabbed her hand to calm her. The look that passed between them seemed to hold a whole conversation, and I felt intrusive looking, so I looked at Edward instead.

"How long?" I mouthed.

"Forever," he said. "Or at least it seems like it sometimes," he said loudly, to get their attention.

"You're just jealous," Jasper said happily, still holding Alice's hand.

"Jealous of you dating my sister? That would be rather Oedipal," he pointed out.

"Didn't Oedipus marry his mother?" I asked thoughtfully.

"The thought is the same," he responded haughtily. _What a crabby appleton,_ I thought, reverting to childhood insults. _He knew I was coming; if I bother him this much he shouldn't have bothered._ I made up my mind to stop trying to be nice to him. _This'll be a fun night,_ I thought pessimistically. Although Alice and Jasper were being very friendly, Edward's mood swings were getting to me.

**Review please!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hi everyone! Thank you all so much for the reviews and story-alerting :) Just to address one thing a reviewer commented on, I'm not sure if this will be Bella/Edward or Bella/Jacob yet... Probably a bit of both, just like the real books :)**

**Chapter 3: Dinner With (Three of) the Cullens  
**

Just as I had expected, the rest of the car ride was so simultaneously awkward and embarrassing for me that I literally sighed with relief when we pulled into a parking lot beside a brightly lit restaurant in Port Angeles. Before Jasper had even found a parking spot, I was unbuckling my seat belt and looking out the window expectantly. Unfortunately, there were no spots left; I could tell from the people milling around in front of the restaurant that it was a busy night.

"Hey, Alice, why don't you and Bella go in and see if we can grab a table," Jasper said distractedly, turning the car around to pull out of the lot.

"Sure," she replied, and unbuckled her seat belt to hop out gracefully. "Table for four!" She caroled as she waited for me to slide out, and I had to laugh. "See you in a minute, Jazz," she said happily. As the car pulled away, she turned to me. "He hates that nickname," she laughed. "I'm the only one allowed to call him it." We started toward the restaurant, and I struggled to find the words for what I wanted to say.

"You two are... nice together," I said awkwardly. "You seem like you're made for each other."

"I think we are," she said simply. We headed right up to the hostess stand. "I'm Alice Cullen; I need a table for four," she said authoritatively. The hostess checked her seating chart.

"I'm sorry, but there'll be about a five or ten minute wait." She said, seeming genuinely apologetic. She handed Alice a small beeper. "We'll buzz that when your table's ready." Alice and I meandered back outside, where Jasper and Edward were just walking up. Alice held up the beeper.

"Five or ten minutes," she said. Jasper wrapped his arm around her shoulders, and she looked up at him and smiled softly. The moment lasted, becoming more and more awkward for Edward and I, who were standing three feet away from each other. Edward shifted from foot to foot, looking progressively more uncomfortable until he reached over and pulled Jasper's hand off Alice's shoulder.

"Brother standing right here, dude," he said irritatedly. "Just because I gave my blessing already doesn't mean I can't take it back, or tell Carlisle and Esme what you two were doing when you said you went to get firewood last weekend."

"Edward, don't say that in front of Bella, you'll make her uncomfortable," Alice scolded, but nevertheless stepped a foot away from Jasper, whose ears were turning red. I tried not to laugh. Edward looked at me.

"I think she can probably handle it," he said.

"That's what she said!" Jasper exclaimed gleefully, and high-fived Edward; who complied only reluctantly.

"Jasper," sighed Alice. "That joke is so juvenile." Edward nodded.

"But so hilarious!" he replied. "If Emmett were here he would think so too. And I bet Bella thought it was funny, right?" He looked at me, and his eyes were so hopeful I had to laugh.

"That was a good one," I agreed. Jasper whooped in triumph.

"She counts as two votes because she's new, and therefore I win!" He held up a fist for me to bump, and I complied, although I was full-out laughing at this point. Alice seemed about to retort when the beeper started flashing and playing a cheerful tune.

"Let's go in, but just so you know, Jasper, that joke was not funny, and just because we have to go, doesn't mean it was." she said mock-seriously, but she grabbed his hand as we started toward the front door.

"They're so cute," I said quietly to Edward, forgetting for a moment that he was possibly the crabbiest teenager I'd ever met. He shrugged, keeping his eyes on the pair as they walked through the mahogany doors a few feet ahead of us.

"Not so cute when everyone in the house has paired up except for you," he said, almost under his breath. I stayed silent, unsure of how to respond, and hurried forward to follow Alice and Jasper to our table. Luckily, the 6'5" blond was not hard to miss. The server handed us our menus and took drink orders, but the service was fast and we were settled with sodas within a few minutes.

"So I know you've probably been asked this, oh, about a million times, but we missed your first few weeks of school. How do you like Forks High?" Jasper asked, seated across from me. I shrugged.

"Bleh. No offense," I added quickly. "Just not much to talk about." To my surprise, all three of them burst into laughter.

"You have no idea how true that is," Alice said once she had calmed down. "You even have to come here to get anything like decent shopping. We'll go sometime, by the way,"

"Sounds good. I think Charlie is dying to get me out of the house." I realized after I said this how desperate it sounded, but Alice saved me.

"Oh, me too. Carlisle is all, 'study if you're bored!', but he doesn't understand. He grew up in a little town outside London, and there was nothing to do there but study," she laughed. "Then he came to Ohio for his residency, and he met Esme, and the rest is history." She flipped open her menu and looked intently at it for about a minute. Then she slapped it shut. "I'm ready!"

"How do you do that?" Edward asked curiously, looking up from his own menu. I realized I should probably see what I wanted, as I could see the waitress eyeing our table speculatively, wondering how quickly she could come over. Her eyes flickered between Jasper and Edward, obviously checking both of them out. I knew she didn't see me as competition, and she couldn't see Alice from her vantage point.

"Do what?" Alice asked absent-mindedly, having already moved on to texting.

"Choose so fast!" He sounded frustrated.

"It's my talent," she said, bored. "And I've never gotten the same thing twice at a restaurant." At my incredulous look, she flipped her phone shut and shoved it in her bag. "What? I get bored easily."

"I've noticed," I murmured, trying to pick something off the menu. It all looked good, and I could see the waitress actually walking over to our table. Finally, I spotted mushroom ravioli, my old standby at Italian restaurants, and I closed my menu.

"Hi! What can I get you all tonight?" The waitress asked, overly chipper. Though her smile never faltered, I saw a flash of disappointment in her eyes when she saw Jasper holding Alice's hand under the table. I had to hand it to her, though, she pulled it off like a champ, taking all of our orders while still subtly flirting with Edward, who seemed oblivious. She started toward the kitchen, swaying slightly and obviously hoping Edward was watching. I glanced at him to see if he was, but he was carefully studying a rip in the oilcloth covering the table. I looked up and saw Alice and Jasper also checking his reaction.

"Edward, just out of curiosity, you know that waitress was hitting on you, right?" Alice asked conversationally. He looked up incredulously.

"She was just being nice," he said. Jasper, Alice, and I all scoffed at the same time.

"She didn't have to lean all over the table to take our orders," Jasper pointed out. "Not that I noticed anything," he added hastily at Alice's look.

"It was pretty obvious," I agreed, taking a sip of my soda.

"I'm sure she wasn't," he said, flushing. "I bet she was just interested in Jasper." This earned him an incredulous look from Alice.

"You think my boyfriend is attractive?" She asked dryly. By this point, Edward's face was bright red.

"That's not what I meant," he said weakly. I started laughing when I saw Jasper's fake hurt face.

"What do you mean, that's not what you meant? Am I not attractive? That's so hurtful!" He managed to hold up the upset facade for about ten seconds before he too broke into laughter.

"Okay, I've known him for a long, long time, and I'm surprised when we go out together and he doesn't get hit on, okay?" Edward was attempting to salvage the situation, but gave up when the rest of us could no longer form coherent sentences when looking at him. He ran a hand through his hair and finally gave in and laughed with us.

--

The rest of the night passed easily, the time slipping by so that I was actually surprised when we exited the restaurant and the sky was dark. We had to walk about a block and a half to where Jasper had managed to find a parking spot. We all slid into our previous seats, still engaged in our lively discussion about _Macbeth_, the book we started that day in English. I had English with Alice, as it turned out. Pretty soon, however, the car grew quiet as we all lapsed into drowsy contemplation. It was about nine-thirty, I think, when I fell asleep, leaning against the car door with my forehead propped against the cool glass. The car ride was about an hour long, which was just enough time for me to get deeply into sleep. When Alice tapped me to wake me up, I started, and I felt something thick and warm fall off my shoulders and onto the floor. I managed to pry my eyes open and I saw Edward picking his jacket up off the floor of the car before Alice herded me out of the car and walked me to my front door.

"This was so fun, Bella. Let's hang out again sometime," she said, smiling, and headed back to the car. I waved weakly, then stumbled inside.

"Hey Charlie," I called softly. I peeked inside the living room; he was asleep on the couch. I tiptoed upstairs, washed my face quickly, and jumped into bed. It had been a long day.

**Review please! Sorry I split this into two chapters; it could have worked with one, but I was kind of writer's block-y.**


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